<chapter id="supporting-kde">
<chapterinfo
><date
>2002-03-04</date
> <releaseinfo
>2.02.00</releaseinfo
> </chapterinfo>
<title
>Supporting &kde;</title>
<anchor id="support"/>

<sect1 id="supporting-kde-introduction">
<title
>Supporting &kde;</title>

<para
>If you are new to &kde;, the &kde; project might look like big machinery to you. Undoubtedly, &kde; is no longer a small project, nevertheless it is very important to realise that it is easy to <quote
>make a difference</quote
> in the &kde; world. </para>

<para
>There is always a need for dedicated developers, graphic artists, sound engineers, translators and documentation writers. Consider jumping aboard this exciting international project and make yourself a name in the software world.</para>

<para
>Along the way you will make countless friends and acquaintances all over the world. Also, the satisfaction that stems from doing actual hands-on work, that will benefit an uncountable number of users world-wide, and from seeing an unparalleled project grow, is hard to beat. Please consider joining and supporting &kde; and hop aboard this exciting journey towards a free and open alternative computing platform. </para>

</sect1>

<sect1 id="supporting-kde-get-started">
<title
>How to get started</title>

<itemizedlist>

<listitem
><para
>Subscribe to the <link linkend="contact"
>&kde; mailing lists</link
> that interest you. </para
></listitem>

<listitem
><para
>Read the <ulink url="http://lists.kde.org"
>mailing list</ulink
> archives in order to get a feel for &kde; development. </para
></listitem>

<listitem
><para
>Learn how to program using the &kde; application framework and join the friendly &kde; developers' community. </para
></listitem>

</itemizedlist>

</sect1>

<sect1 id="supporting-kde-financial-support">
<title
>Supporting financially</title>

<para
>The &kde; team is working very hard on providing you with the best desktop available for the &UNIX; operating system. &kde; is available for free and will always be available for free, including each and every line of its source code, for everyone to modify and distribute. If you enjoy and use &kde; please consider supporting the &kde; Project financially. &kde; is in constant need of funds in order to finance its operations. </para>

<para
>If your busy schedule or skills do not permit you to be actively involved in &kde; development, please consider supporting &kde; financially by sending a donation to: </para>

<para
>You can send standard US cheques to the following address: </para>

<literallayout
>K Desktop Environment e.V.
Mirko Boehm
2029 Chadds Ford Drive
Reston, VA 20191
USA
</literallayout>

<para
>Use "KDE e.V. - Mirko Boehm" in the "Pay to the order of..." line. </para>

<para
>From Europe, you may remit your donation to (be aware of a fee if wiring from outside of Germany): </para>

<literallayout
>K Desktop Environment e.V.
Account-Nr. 0 66 64 46
BLZ 200 700 24
Deutsche Bank 24
</literallayout>

<para
>Please contact Mirko Boehm <email
>kde-ev-treasurer@kde.org</email
>if you have any questions. </para>

<para
>Your contribution is very much appreciated. Thank you! </para>

</sect1>
</chapter>

